Ford recalls 230,000 vans

Ford is recalling 230,000 minivans in cold-weather states to fix rust problems that can cause the third-row seats to come loose.

The company says the recall affects Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey minivans from the 2004 through 2007 model years. They were sold mainly in the U.S. and Canada.

Ford says that over time, rust can weaken the mounting brackets that attach the seats. The company says no crashes or injuries have been reported from the problem.

Dealers will install new seat mounting brackets outside the area that can rust. They'll also install panels above the rear wheels to prevent water from entering.

Icahn wants Dell to remain a public company

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn wants Dell Inc. to remain a public company and proposed rewarding shareholders with a large dividend payment instead of becoming private in a $24.4 billion buyout.

He says the amount being offered by a group led by Dell founder and Chief Executive Michael Dell substantially undervalues the slumping PC maker.

Icahn wrote in a March 5 letter to Dell directors that the Round Rock, Texas, company should chose his alternative, which would involve a special dividend totaling $9 per share, if shareholders reject the buyout plan that was announced in February.

If the board declines to promise that, Icahn said the company should combine a shareholder vote on the buyout with its annual meeting to elect new directors, for which he will nominate a slate of candidates.

Oil prices, gas boom help push manufacturing up

After decades of decline, American manufacturing is on the upswing, thanks largely to higher oil prices and the natural gas boom that makes it cheaper to fuel a factory in the U.S. New technologies also are contributing to the resurgence.

Ohio, which lost 149,000 manufacturing jobs during the recession, has created 49,000 manufacturing jobs in the past three years, including 2,300 in advanced manufacturing in the past year, according to the latest figures from the Ohio Development Services Agency.

Michigan lost 146,000 manufacturing jobs between December 2007 and December 2009, according to the National Association of Manufacturers. But in the past three years the state has added more than 68,000 manufacturing jobs, the largest increase of any state.

Erie County has added 1,500 manufacturing jobs over the past year, bringing the county's total to 22,000